FRANK DE BOER is looking forward to facing Celtic again – but the Ajax boss is still unable to escape the ghosts of past Parkhead memories.

As a Rangers player nine years ago, De Boer made two appearances in Old Firm derbies. On both occasions he was haunted by Henrik Larsson.

Now he is hoping to make it third time lucky – especially as he doesn’t have the “pain in the ass” Swede to worry about.

Larsson scored the winner the first time De Boer was here then set up a winner for Chris Sutton the second time the Dutchman was dumped.

As if to rub salt into his wounds, De Boer was surrounded by pictures of his nemesis as he was invited to discuss tonight’s Group H tie from the confines of the No.7 restaurant at Parkhead.

To add to the irony, there was actually a picture of Larsson celebrating the very goal he scored against De Boer on a wall just to the left of the manager.

He said: “It was a great atmosphere in the games with the rivalry between the two clubs. I had quite a good feeling about it but I played against Henrik Larsson and he was a real pain in the ass at that time for Rangers.

“I had him under control but there was a free-kick and it just landed at his feet. I thought it was quite a lucky goal!

“We also lost in the last minute to Celtic again so hopefully this will be third time lucky. It’s going to change sometime and hopefully luck is now on my side.

“We have doing better and better in each match recently and I know that when you keep playing better the good matches will follow. There is a great chance it will happen here.”

For Ajax to get a result, the temperament of De Boer’s young players will have to match their undoubted talent.

Failure to win on the road this season in six attempts has set an unwanted club record and the manager knows from bitter experience that Celtic Park is a terrible place to try to end such a sequence.

But De Boer said: “Our players have to enjoy this kind of atmosphere. For me, with the people shouting at you, it was a great adventure.

“When you are young, you want to play in this kind of stadium. It can only give you more adrenalin in your body to perform.

“If you are worse than your normal level then maybe you’re not good enough to play at this level.

“You can be nervous when the referee starts the game but you must get rid of all the nerves and enjoy a great stadium and great pitch.

“At the derbies between Real Madrid and Barcelona there is a great atmosphere.But also Rangers against Celtic and of course when I played for Galatasaray against Fenerbahce. Those three classics are, for me, the best in Europe and maybe the world.

“They are unbelievable to get involved in, especially as a player.”

Of course it’s not just the atmosphere that Ajax will have to quell but Lennon’s fired-up troops.

Without a point in the section, the Scottish champions are desperate to grab a win and De Boer knows the dangers posed by the hosts.

But he has faith in his own kids and said: “Of course we would prefer to win the game. If we want the potential to finish in second place then the best thing is to win. That might also put us in a good position for third place.

“To lose is the worst option but a draw could maybe be enough because in two weeks’ time we have Celtic in the Amsterdam ArenA.

“If we lose this game it gives Celtic a big advantage so we want to get three points from Celtic Park if we can.

“Kris Commons and Scott Brown are key players for Celtic. Brown is the leader and Commons is the technical player, so they are very important and it’s not good for them to lose them.

“But there are still quality players left, so we’ll concentrate on our own game.

“The most important thing I tell my players is to play their own game and show guts.

“We want to play as we did in the second half against Twente, to create that many chances.

“If you play in a big game like that and make four good chances in one half, then that’s fair enough I think.

“If you can do that in two halves you’ll be satisfied.

“I was satisfied at our second-half performance. I had that feeling after the match and still have it.

“We want to play in Europe after the winter break, so we really want to win or at least we’d like a draw.

“That’s very important. If we lose it will be really difficult, but that goes for both teams.”